Drone explodes near gas pipeline on Bulgaria-Romania border
Such drones are difficult to detect (photo: Getty Images)
An unidentified drone entered Bulgarian airspace from Romania on Saturday, August 8. It exploded shortly after crossing the border, near an international gas pipeline, Bulgarian Prime Minister Rumen Radev stated.
According to Minister Radev, the incident occurred shortly after 5 a.m. The drone exploded about 200 meters from a Romanian compressor station and approximately 1 kilometer from a Bulgarian compressor station on the Trans-Balkan gas pipeline.
The drone was not identified while flying over Romania and Bulgaria. It is therefore currently unclear where the drone came from or whether it was linked to Ukraine or Russia.
"There are no casualties or damage to buildings. The area has been cordoned off. We will continue to monitor the situation and strengthen surveillance. Following this incident, we will also redeploy border police anti-drone detection and countermeasure capabilities from the border with Türkiye to the border with Romania," Radev said.
Meanwhile, Bulgarian Defense Minister Dimitar Stoyanov said the incident would be raised at a meeting of the North Atlantic Council early next week.
He noted that judging by the force of the explosion and the column of black smoke, the drone was likely carrying a significant amount of explosives. He added that such drones are difficult to detect because of their small size and low flight altitude.
Notable that Bulgaria and Romania are both members of NATO and the European Union.
Other drone incidents
Earlier that night, drones were spotted flying over a key Bundeswehr logistics facility in the German city of Mechernich. Patriot air defense systems are reportedly repaired there.
Media also reported that flights at Leipzig Airport were temporarily suspended during the night of August 5 after a drone was found near the runway, close to a Ukrainian An-124 transport aircraft. It was later reported that the drone was carrying explosives and that the aircraft was transporting ammunition.
